Thiamine Alarms: 19 Subtle Signs Your Body Needs Vitamin B1

9. Delirium

Individuals who experience delirium may be affected by a deficiency of thiamine. Thiamine is an important vitamin that helps facilitate the conversion of dietary nutrients into cellular energy the body can use. These processes require the use of certain enzymes that depend on the presence of thiamine to work correctly. As a result, there is a reduction in the activities of these enzymes that effectively begins a cascade of metabolic events that compromise significant amounts of energy. Certain tissues in the brain have greater metabolic requirements than other parts. The absence of energy and thiamine in these demanding tissues results in neuronal death. When this process occurs in certain parts of the brain, the patient can experience episodes of delirium. Additionally, a thiamine deficiency commonly results in increased cardiac output and an elevated resting heart rate. Both of these factors over time can result in reduced heart function. When the heart cannot pump efficiently enough or blood pressure becomes too low, not enough oxygen is delivered to the tissues in the brain. This mechanism can also result in an affected individual's delirium.

10. Nausea And Vomiting

Nausea and vomiting is an uncommon symptom manifestation in a thiamine deficiency. The mechanism behind the occurrence of this symptom is similar to what adversely affects the reflexes. A build-up of lactic acid and pyruvic acid in the blood can cause inflammation in the fibers of a nerve the brain uses to communicate with the digestive tract. This nerve is called the vagus nerve, and it is responsible for the stimulation of involuntary movements in the stomach, esophagus, and most of the intestines. These movements help food travel through the gastrointestinal tract. When the vagus nerve becomes inflamed and swollen, it can cause abnormalities in the transmission of signals between the brain and muscles that produce these movements in the stomach and esophagus. When these abnormalities include a spasmodic misfiring of nerve impulses, the esophagus and or stomach can move too much. This abnormal movement can cause the patient to feel nauseated and or vomit as a result of their thiamine deficiency.